Stuck in a Plateau

brittk122
brittk122 Posts: 12 Member
edited November 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
I need help. I set a start date for getting back to healthy for February 1st; I was weighing at 225 lbs. Since then I have lost 23 lbs so far, but the last few weeks I have been staying at relatively the same place no matter what I do. I have tried changing what I'm eating even more than I already have been. I make sure I have at least 45 min. of activity that gets my heart rate up, but nothing is working. Ideally I want to break the 200 mark by the end of April but as of right now it's looking like it's not going to happen.
Is there anything I can try to do to break this. I not sure what to do from here?

Replies

  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,439 Member
    Do you use a food scale, and weigh and log EVERYTHING? Start there.

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  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    How long as it been exactly since you've lost weight?

    How many calories are you eating per day?

    Are you eating back activity calories?

    Do you have any meals or days that you don't log?
  • fitmom4lifemfp
    fitmom4lifemfp Posts: 1,572 Member
    More info needed, as stated above.
  • brittk122
    brittk122 Posts: 12 Member
    It has been about 4 weeks since I have lost any weight, not including just slight fluctuations.
    I have the set goal to eat the 1,200 calories per day but I usually fall short of that. I tend not to eat very much just because I just don't feel hungry.
    No, I am not eating back the activity calories. I'm barely eating the daily goal. If I eat the 1,200 cals in a day once a week it’s a miracle.
    I log, everything. I have may it a routine to log things before I eat/drink them just to be sure I don’t forget.

    As for the food scale I’m honestly not sure exactly what that is. I do pay attention to the breakdown in everything that I am eating tho.

    If it is any help I do take Hydroxycut, before breakfast and dinner, and a Super B Complex, once daily to help me wake up and stay focused at work. With both of those I do take them as instructed as well.
  • fitmom4lifemfp
    fitmom4lifemfp Posts: 1,572 Member
    If you are not using a scale to weigh your food it is highly likely that you are eating more than what you have been logging. This is the usually what happens if you don't take time to measure exactly what you eat.
  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
    Your diary is closed.

    At 200+ pounds, if you were eating 1200 a day you should weight less today than you did a month ago. Without using a food scale, you don't really know how much you are eating. How can you tell if you're having 4 ounces of chicken breast, or 6 or 8? How can you know if your banana is 100 grams or 125 grams?

    You can open your diary (settings, diary settings, change to public) for more specific suggestions. But in general, to be accurate you need to weigh your solid food and enter it by weight. Log liquids (beverages, cooking oils, etc.) using cups or teaspoons/tablespoons.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    brittk122 wrote: »
    It has been about 4 weeks since I have lost any weight, not including just slight fluctuations.
    I have the set goal to eat the 1,200 calories per day but I usually fall short of that. I tend not to eat very much just because I just don't feel hungry.
    No, I am not eating back the activity calories. I'm barely eating the daily goal. If I eat the 1,200 cals in a day once a week it’s a miracle.
    I log, everything. I have may it a routine to log things before I eat/drink them just to be sure I don’t forget.

    As for the food scale I’m honestly not sure exactly what that is. I do pay attention to the breakdown in everything that I am eating tho.

    If it is any help I do take Hydroxycut, before breakfast and dinner, and a Super B Complex, once daily to help me wake up and stay focused at work. With both of those I do take them as instructed as well.

    Usually when someone reports that they are eating a very low number of calories and not losing weight, it's because logging issues mean they are eating more than they think they are. If you aren't using a scale, your portions could be larger than you think they are. It's also possible that you might accidentally be choosing inaccurate entries from the MFP database and these are resulting in you eating more than you think you are. If you open your diary, you may get some more specific help.
  • jessiferrrb
    jessiferrrb Posts: 1,758 Member
    it took me literally a year to go down from 223 to 200. you've done it in 2.5 months. lol. i'd say that you're doing super well. of course i eat a lot more calories than you, which is something you could consider (if you're hungry or bored with your current method), but first i would tighten up your logging.

    1. weighing on a kitchen scale is the best way to know how much you are eating of any particular food.
    2. choosing accurate entries in the database is more complicated than it seems. if you can, search for USDA food items and check them for accuracy. this has an added bonus because those entries are often quantified in grams, and that's super convenient when you're weighing your food.
    3. if you're making things at home and searching for "homemade" in the database there is a really low chance that someone else's homemade is going to match yours. try the recipe creator and weigh ingredients.
    4. make sure you log drinks, condiments, etc.
  • brittk122
    brittk122 Posts: 12 Member
    Ok so I'm not using the food scale method and tracking the oz. exactly but I am only eating by the serving size, and I avoid doubling up on servings in a day even if they are spaced out. Should I not be doing this?

    Other than the oz. everything else I track correctly, the only thing that I do not track exactly is my water (unless its flavored, like Propel, and I don’t have very often)
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,439 Member
    brittk122 wrote: »
    Ok so I'm not using the food scale method and tracking the oz. exactly but I am only eating by the serving size, and I avoid doubling up on servings in a day even if they are spaced out. Should I not be doing this?

    Other than the oz. everything else I track correctly, the only thing that I do not track exactly is my water (unless its flavored, like Propel, and I don’t have very often)

    Food scales are cheap, under $20 usually. You could get one and do an experiment on your usual foods and see if you're accurately logging them or not.

    And with a food scale, it's better to weigh in grams if you can, more precise.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    brittk122 wrote: »
    Ok so I'm not using the food scale method and tracking the oz. exactly but I am only eating by the serving size, and I avoid doubling up on servings in a day even if they are spaced out. Should I not be doing this?

    Other than the oz. everything else I track correctly, the only thing that I do not track exactly is my water (unless its flavored, like Propel, and I don’t have very often)

    If you aren't weighing your food, you might be eating more than a serving size. A scale is the best way to determine how much you're actually eating.
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
    These videos might be useful:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY

    https://youtu.be/vjKPIcI51lU

    http://youtube.com/watch?v=XpHykP6e_Uk
  • jessiferrrb
    jessiferrrb Posts: 1,758 Member
    here's a recent thread on serving sizes and packaging vs. scales

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10543923/why-should-i-use-a-food-scale/p1

    the issue is that if you're not measuring your food you have a greater potential to be inaccurate in your calorie counting. for me, personally, i want to be as accurate as possible about the things i have control over.

    for example: i make the "same" veggie burger every time i want one. i use the same kind of bread, a slice of cheese, tomato, pickles, mayo, ketchup, mustard, avocado and of course the veggie burger itself with a side of baked potato. last time i made it i clocked it at 654 calories, the time before that it was 724. the difference in the cheese alone was 30 calories and they were 2 slices from the same package, one was just a little thicker.
  • CharlieBeansmomTracey
    CharlieBeansmomTracey Posts: 7,682 Member
    also stop the hydroxycut,its not going to do anything for you(it doesnt do what it claims to do), if that is what is killing your appetite then I would say to stop using it. if you are eating less than 1200 calories and exercising and netting low numbers that in itself is not healthy.it could lead to a binge (even if you arent a person who binges).But I would say no weight loss is due to eating more than you think(like others stated)

    serving sizes on packages can be off by up to 20%,so if you use measuring cups you can be eating more than you think,I learned that the hard way. Get a cheap scale, measure things out in cups and then weigh it on the scale to see how much you really are eating,you will probably be shocked like I was.
  • brittk122
    brittk122 Posts: 12 Member
    I will have to look into getting one. I thought just going by serving size was plenty accurate. Thank you for the advice.
  • CharlieBeansmomTracey
    CharlieBeansmomTracey Posts: 7,682 Member
    brittk122 wrote: »
    I will have to look into getting one. I thought just going by serving size was plenty accurate. Thank you for the advice.

    no,sadly most of the time its not. peanut butter is another tricky one. if the serving size says 56g/ 1/2 cup(for example). if you use cups a half cup could be 60 or more grams.it may or may not be a lot, but it all adds up.
  • brittk122
    brittk122 Posts: 12 Member
    wow didn't realise it was that far off
  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
    brittk122 wrote: »
    wow didn't realise it was that far off

    Using cups/spoons for solid food is off because each time you fill the cup, you pack a different amount into it. That is why the nutritional label also shows servings in grams. Like oat meal may say 1 serving = 1/2 cup, 56 grams. Depending on how it settles, your 1/2 cup could be more or less than 56 grams. But more often than not, we put too much... If you put it on a food scale you might see that what fits in your 1/2 cup is actual 70 grams.

    I often prelog my day, filling in usual suspects for meals/snacks. Then edit as the day goes to adjust quantities, or if I have something different than originally planned. IT helps me avoid getting to dinner and being out of calories. :)
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